Reading Challenge/Goals for 2024

[bobbiwoz]

46/80
Between Sundays by Karen Kingsbury.

 

[Lumpy1106]

20/20 - "Crying in H-Mart", Michelle Zauner, 3/5
I picked this one up because I saw it on the "most read" shelf at Powells's books in Portland. It was OK. The main character's Mom passes away and she relates how she connected to her Mom through Korean food. OK so far, but the ENDLESS description of Korean food, page after page, meal after meal - ugh. Meanwhile there are other characters who should be important to her that are just lost in all the food talk. I did really relate to her going through her Mom's stuff as they prepared the family home to be put on the market. It's good - just not worth the hype.

Changing my goal to 25 books. Should be able to do it.

 

[Lumpy1106]

I really appreciate everyone sharing their books and reviews. I’ve read many of your suggestions. I read everything on my iPad through the library app Libby. Every time I see a book I think I’d like I put it in the wait list. Right now I have ten books in my wait list. I have to keep turning down books - delaying delivery. I might be reading two books at a time. I was wondering if it’s a problem to keep turning down or delaying delivery. Anyone have any information on that? Today I was offered three books and had to delay all of them.

I've never had a problem doing that.

 

[melk]

28/30 Maybe You Should Talk To Someone by Lori Gottlieb

Written by a psychotherapist whose world comes crashing down so she enters therapy herself. It basically alternates between her roles as both clinician and patient. Interesting but I was ready for it to be done about halfway through.

 

[Wood Nymph]

33/30 - Death on the Nile - Agatha Christe - 5/5

This is one of Agatha's Christie most famous stories, and it is a good one. I had never seen the movie, so I didn't know anything about the story. This book deserves all the praise it gets.

 

[MGMmjl]

29/32 - The Spy Coast by Tess Gerritsen

Description:
"Former spy Maggie Bird came to the seaside village of Purity, Maine, eager to put the past behind her after a mission went tragically wrong. These days, she’s living quietly on her chicken farm, still wary of blowback from the events that forced her early retirement.

But when a body turns up in Maggie’s driveway, she knows it’s a message from former foes who haven’t forgotten her. Maggie turns to her local circle of old friends—all retirees from the CIA—to help uncover the truth about who is trying to kill her, and why. This 'Martini Club' of former spies may be retired, but they still have a few useful skills that they’re eager to use again, if only to spice up their rather sedate new lives.

Complicating their efforts is Purity’s acting police chief, Jo Thibodeau. More accustomed to dealing with rowdy tourists than homicide, Jo is puzzled by Maggie’s reluctance to share information—and by her odd circle of friends, who seem to be a step ahead of her at every turn.

As Jo’s investigation collides with the Martini Club’s maneuvers, Maggie’s hunt for answers will force her to revisit a clandestine career that spanned the globe, from Bangkok to Istanbul, from London to Malta. The ghosts of her past have returned, but with the help of her friends—and the reluctant Jo Thibodeau—Maggie might just be able to save the life she’s built."

I really enjoyed this book! It is the first in a series, with the 2nd installment scheduled to be released in March.

 

[bobbiwoz]

33/30 - Death on the Nile - Agatha Christe - 5/5

This is one of Agatha's Christie most famous stories, and it is a good one. I had never seen the movie, so I didn't know anything about the story. This book deserves all the praise it gets.

I will try it! Thanks for the recommendation!

 

[Kirby]

#68 - What Happened to the Bennetts by Lisa Scottoline
Genre - Mystery
Your family has been attacked. Now you have to choose between law… and justice.
Jason Bennett is a suburban dad whose life takes a horrific turn. He is driving his family home when a pickup truck begins tailgating them. Suddenly two men jump from the pickup and pull guns on Jason, demanding the car. A horrific flash of violence changes his life forever.
Later that awful night, Jason and his family receive a visit from the FBI. The agents tell them that the carjackers were members of a dangerous drug-trafficking organization — and now Jason and his family are in their crosshairs.
The agents advise the Bennetts to enter the witness protection program. But WITSEC was not designed to protect law-abiding families. Trapped in an unfamiliar life, the Bennetts begin to fall apart at the seams. Then Jason learns a shocking truth and realizes that he has to take matters into his own hands.
Sometimes justice is a one-man show.
I liked the first half of the book better than the second half.

#69 - Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Olympics by Daniel James Brown
Genre - Historical
For readers of Unbroken, out of the depths of the Depression comes an irresistible story about beating the odds and finding hope in the most desperate of times—the improbable, intimate account of how nine working-class boys from the American West showed the world at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin what true grit really meant.
It was an unlikely quest from the start. With a team composed of the sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers, the University of Washington’s eight-oar crew team was never expected to defeat the elite teams of the East Coast and Great Britain, yet they did, going on to shock the world by defeating the German team rowing for Adolf Hitler. The emotional heart of the tale lies with Joe Rantz, a teenager without family or prospects, who rows not only to regain his shattered self-regard but also to find a real place for himself in the world. Drawing on the boys’ own journals and vivid memories of a once-in-a-lifetime shared dream, Brown has created an unforgettable portrait of an era, a celebration of a remarkable achievement, and a chronicle of one extraordinary young man’s personal quest.
Excellent book! The author not only tells the story of the boys and how they made it to the Olympics, he also tells what was going on in the world at the same time. It was made into a movie which I haven't see yet but have heard was very good. If you have seen the movie and liked it you should read this book. It tells so much more than could be put into a movie. This was my book club's pick for October and everyone gave it rave reviews.

#70 - Devils Claw; Book 8 of the Joanna Brady series by J. A. Jance
Genre - Mystery
In the desert, a Native American woman is dead—an ex-con once jailed for the murder of her husband—and her teenage daughter has vanished into the long shadows of the night-still canyons. A dedicated law officer, Sheriff Joanna Brady of Cochise County has suffered stoically through loss and pain—yet she has never wavered in her commitment to duty and the pursuit of justice. Now, as she stands on the brink of a new life and new happiness, death is summoning her once more, calling her down a twisted trail of hatred, greed, and devastating consequence to the black heart of the Dragoon Mountains.There is no respite yet for Joanna Brady—only a terrifying excursion into a world of passion and violence, where long-buried secrets are the best reasons of all to kill . . . or to die.
Can't wait to read the next one!

 

[willowsnn3]

#43/50 Miss Julia Throws a Wedding by Ann B. Ross
The Miss Julia books are always fun to read when you just need a little chaotic fluff reading.

 

[Lumpy1106]

28/30 Maybe You Should Talk To Someone by Lori Gottlieb

Written by a psychotherapist whose world comes crashing down so she enters therapy herself. It basically alternates between her roles as both clinician and patient. Interesting but I was ready for it to be done about halfway through.

Reading this one now - and yeah, it does seem to be longer than it needs to be. Will update when I finish...

 

[bobbiwoz]

47/80
Death in an Irish Cemetery by Carlene O’Connor. 4/5

After joining the police force of her small Irish village, a local woman must investigate the murder of a stranger in this cozy mystery novel.

 

[OKW8297]

27. The Lost World by Michael Crighton
This was very good, but I think about 50 pages too long. The first book, Jurassic Park is outstanding.

 

[bobbiwoz]

48/80 I have been in hospital since Sunday night, and I’m reading a lot!! Don’t think I will get to 80 by the end of the year, though!

“Winter in Paradise” by Elin Hilderbrand
A husband’s secret life, a wife’s new beginning! 4/5

 

[melk]

48/80 I have been in hospital since Sunday night, and I’m reading a lot!! Don’t think I will get to 80 by the end of the year, though!

“Winter in Paradise” by Elin Hilderbrand
A husband’s secret life, a wife’s new beginning! 4/5

Oh no! Hope all is well and you’re feeling okay.

Not sure if you are aware but Winter in Paradise is the first in a trilogy. I enjoyed the series.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Oh no! Hope all is well and you’re feeling okay.

Not sure if you are aware but Winter in Paradise is the first in a trilogy. I enjoyed the series.

Thank you! They are still trying to find what’s wrong!
I certainly figured there would be more with that ending! Thanks for mentioning that!

 

[bobbiwoz]

49/80. “Every Breath” by Nicholas Sparks. “Illuminating heartbreaking regrets and enduring hope, this book explores the many facets of love that lay claim to our deepest loyalties while asking a life-changing question: How long can a dream survive?”4.75/5

 

[luvmarypoppins]

48/80 I have been in hospital since Sunday night, and I’m reading a lot!! Don’t think I will get to 80 by the end of the year, though!

“Winter in Paradise” by Elin Hilderbrand
A husband’s secret life, a wife’s new beginning! 4/5

Wishing you all the best. Hope you are resting, reading and recovering.

 

[willowsnn3]

48/80 I have been in hospital since Sunday night, and I’m reading a lot!! Don’t think I will get to 80 by the end of the year, though!

“Winter in Paradise” by Elin Hilderbrand
A husband’s secret life, a wife’s new beginning! 4/5

Hope you get well soon! Keep us informed.

 

[willowsnn3]

#44/50 A Land More Kind Than Home by Wiley Cash
For a curious boy like Jess Hall, growing up in Marshall means trouble when your mother catches you spying on grown-ups. Adventurous and precocious, Jess is enormously protective of his older brother, Christopher, a mute whom everyone calls Stump. Though their mother has warned them not to snoop, Stump can't help sneaking a look at something he's not supposed to — an act that will have catastrophic repercussions, shattering both his world and Jess's. It's a wrenching event that thrusts Jess into an adulthood for which he's not prepared. While there is much about the world that still confuses him, he now knows that a new understanding can bring not only a growing danger and evil — but also the possibility of freedom and deliverance as well.

Told by three resonant and evocative characters — Jess; Adelaide Lyle, the town midwife and moral conscience; and Clem Barefield, a sheriff with his own painful past
Very good, I liked it.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Wishing you all the best. Hope you are resting, reading and recovering.

Hope you get well soon! Keep us informed.

Thank you. I may be going home after a test today. I would be waiting for test results at home.